This month Reflejo Court became the first court in Bexar County to receive Level 1 Trauma Informed Certification. It is now recognized as a court that works to build resilience and empower its participants by providing physical, psychological, and emotional support through the principles of safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration, and empowerment. The certification process involved soliciting and addressing employee and participant feedback, training, education amongst staff members, and site visits. The Ecumenical Center, the certifying entity for the South Texas Trauma Informed Care Consortium certified the Court.
Reflejo Court Announces 6 Graduation and Court of the Year Award
Last week, the Texas Association of Specialty Courts (TASC) announced that Bexar County’s Reflejo Court was selected as the TASC’s Court of the Year. The Reflejo Court Team will be represented by Judge Ruben G. Reyes Outstanding Specialty Court Team Award at next month’s annual TASC Conference in Fort Worth, Texas. This award comes on the heels of the Court’s 6th Bi-Annual Graduation this past January. Reflejo Court has graduated 28 participants since 2020 when it admitted its first participant. “This recognition, at the statewide level, affirms that the work we are doing with first time offenders of family violence is making a difference, not only in their individual lives, but in the lives of their family members and the community at large,” commented Judge Rosie Speedlin Gonzalez who presides over Reflejo Court & Bexar County Court at Law No. 13.
Reflejo Court was the brainchild of Judge Rosie Speedlin Gonzalez, her spouse Dr. Stacy Speedlin Gonzalez, Ph.D. (a published expert on Trauma and Addiction), and retired Judge Al Alonso. This special program targets first time offenders of misdemeanor level family/domestic violence offenses with a substance abuse issue. The program is voluntary and only open to defendants who express a desire to change their behavior and are willing to address their trauma and addictions. The program is 12-24 months long. Reflejo Court also facilitates availability of sober housing (partners with Oxford Homes and other sober housing providers) and actively refers participants to the City of San Antonio’s Ready to Work Program. Other community partners include, but are not limited to, the District Attorney’s Office, Bexar County Adult Probation Dept., the Public Defender’s Office, Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, Lifetime Recovery, American Indians in Texas at the Spanish Colonial Missions, ALPHA Home, and the Center for Health Care Services.
“Reflejo Court changed my life,” said Megan M., a program graduate who now works in the sober community helping others still suffering from their addictions and needing help finding sobriety. Founded in 2019, Reflejo Court is one of a handful of Specialty Courts in the United States that works with offenders of family/domestic violence. Its mission is to transform the lives of the participants and, in the long run, reduce the number of family/domestic violence cases in Bexar County.
